


Rooftop

by graciegirl2001



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist - All Media Types, Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Young!Royai, kinda angsty, what a surprise I’m writing more about the kiddos
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-27
Updated: 2019-05-27
Packaged: 2020-03-20 03:26:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,482
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18984271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/graciegirl2001/pseuds/graciegirl2001
Summary: Aw c'mon now... how can you dislike me if we’ve barely even spoken? I think this has been the most you’ve said to me in three months Riza Hawkeye.”“Miss Hawkeye if you please.”“Miss Riza then. Tell me Miss Riza, why are you up so late? And on the roof no less! There are plenty of other places for sleeping or stargazing.”





	Rooftop

Roy never expected the countryside to be so loud. 

The world outside of his aunt’s bar in Central City would be different; Roy knew this; but he hadn’t expected the vast grassy hills to teem with such life at all hours. Underneath the scratchy comforter, on the old creaky mattress, with crickets and bullfrogs practically screeching outside the Hawkeye home, sleep seemed inevitable.

And… Roy needed to take a whiz. 

Finally deciding to make the trek down the hall to the bathroom, Roy stretched and rubbed at his eyes. Moonlight spilled across his windowsill, lighting the aged wood just enough for the boy to make his way across the room. 

The Hawkeye manor, Roy had determined over the course of the two month period he had been a resident, was a being in it and of itself. The old house seemed to take in rattling breaths with each step, and evening winds turned into sighs. 

The sounds frightened him at first- for even scientists entertained the idea of ghosts periodically- but after a while the constant shifting of the house became a fond familiarity. They still kept him up at night, mind wandering, but it was a comfortable sort of alertness.

Far scarier than the old house though, was Berthold Hawkeye himself. The aged alchemist was a genius to be sure, and Roy had become accustomed to his strange, and unpredictable ways, but there was always a glint of something... insanity perhaps... in his eyes that kept Roy wary. It was on nights like this, that the apprentice was glad his master’s bedroom lay on the floor below. He did have to watch out for the other manor resident, though she seemed to scurry away at first sight. 

As Roy made his way down the hallway, Riza Hawkeye’s door remained close. 

All but one of the bulbs in the bathroom had gone out, but Roy only fumbled slightly finding the porcelain bowl. The open window provided some much needed light as he relieved himself. 

The window. Why was the window open? 

Washing up and turning to the sill Roy reached to close the shutters. He wasn’t sure what stopped him, but soon enough his head craned out into the open air. A light breeze ruffled the boy’s dark hair and he sighed, taking in the smells of wildflowers and grass. 

“Haven’t you finished with your business Mr. Mustang? Or do you make a habit of smelling the roses after you take a pee?” 

Roy jumped at the voice, banging his head against the top of the window.

“Ow... gee you scared the living... hold on why are you-“ Roy fumbled, rubbing his head.

A few feet away perched his master’s daughter, her gleaming amber eyes observing him with caution and curiosity. She was still in her nightclothes- bare feet tucked against her small frame. She leaned against the roof tiles, seemingly unbothered by the drop below. She must have climbed out the window and forgotten to shut it.

“Do you make a habit of giving random passerby’s a heart attack as soon as they intrude upon your rooftop? Because you have certainly succeeded,” Roy groaned his head throbbing.

Riza crossed her legs and narrowed her eyes. “Only the ones I don’t like.”

Roy pushed the window up higher and her eyes narrowed further. 

“Aw c'mon now... how can you dislike me if we’ve barely even spoken? I think this has been the most you’ve said to me in three months Riza Hawkeye.”

“Miss Hawkeye if you please.”

“Miss Riza then. Tell me Miss Riza, why are you up so late? And on the roof no less! There are plenty of other places for sleeping or stargazing.”

Riza wrinkled her nose. “It’s the only place I can plot your demise in peace you nosy boy. Now buzz off.” Wavering only once, the girl stood, and walked along the rooftop to a safe distance away from Roy’s window. 

Ever more curious, Roy began to fit himself through the window. It must have been easier for the scrawny girl, but Roy managed to climb out of the bathroom and onto the roof. Up there, it seemed so much higher. 

If Riza noticed his efforts, she didn’t make it known, instead deciding to recline against the shingles, closing her eyes. 

Roy opted for scooting across the roof on his backside. 

“Miss Riza. Why do you hate me?” The boy voiced quietly, still inching closer.

“Go away.”

“Did I do something wrong?”

“Leave me alone Mr. Mustang.”

“I’m really sorry if I did-“

“Will you shut up!!” Riza huffed, sitting up in a flash of movement. Seeing his expression she flushed red and added a halfhearted “please.” 

Roy merely nodded and snapped his mouth closed. Both children lie back in silence for a long while, listening to the hoots and croaks of the world below. Riza sighed.

“You didn’t do anything. Not really.” She said softly.

Roy didn’t reply, in fear of getting chased off.

“I do hate you. Just like I hated all the rest. But you’re worse than them. I can’t seem to get rid of you.”

The boy probably ought to have felt offended, but the honesty and guilt that filled his companion’s words only seemed to put him at peace. 

“Master Hawkeye will probably kick me out soon. I wouldn’t worry,” Roy replied, hoping to raise the girl’s spirits.

“No. He likes you. He looks you in the eyes. Actually listens. He didn’t do that with the others.”

Now it’s Roy’s turn to blush. Master Hawkeye approving of him. Of Roy Mustang. Fancy that.

“With the others he would work for about a week or so, but not you.”

Bolstering his courage, Roy spoke again. “Why is it that you want me to fail then? Don’t you want your father to be happy... successful...?”

Riza tensed, voice low and somber. “My father hasn’t been happy for six years. Not since we buried my mother. You, and any other rich city boy aren’t going to change that.”

The girl took in a shaky breath. “As for his research, the deeper he gets with you apprentices the worse off he is. He thinks he’s going to find something, some solution... I don’t know.” 

Riza rolled over to face away from Roy, and he felt his gut sink. “All I know is the sooner you leave the sooner he gets desperate enough to come up for a meal once in a while,” her voice came out as barely more than a whisper now and Roy just caught the last bit.

“You’re jealous of me?”

She didn’t answer.

“But he loves you Miss Riza. He couldn’t care less about some stupid kid from Central. You’re his daughter after all!”

Riza curled tighter into herself. “He doesn’t Mr. Mustang.”

“Sure he does. He just has an odd way of showing it.”

“What do you know about my father?”

Roy propped himself onto one elbow, brows furrowed. “Well all fathers love their children don’t they?”

“Maybe yours does. But but not mine.” 

Roy heard something that might have been a sniffle.

“My dad is dead.”

Riza hesitated. “What?”

“Dead. Gone in a car crash with my mom when I was four. I barely remember him at all.” The words left a foul taste in his mouth, but it felt good to get them out nonetheless.

Riza rolled back over, slowly. “I’m... I’m really sorry,” she said solemnly.

“Don’t be. They’re together now I’m sure.”

“You believe in an afterlife?”

He didn’t.

“Why not? It doesn’t seem right for people like that to just cease to exist.”

“My dad doesn’t. He tried to bring my mom back once though.”

Roy froze in his tracks. “Bring her back?” Like… human transmutation?

Riza looked uncomfortable. “With alchemy. He said he could do it. Said we could see her again. He hugged me then… smiled. And I thought that maybe it was possible… that it would fix him.”

Roy’s heart pounded in his chest. Berthold committed the taboo. He’s almost afraid to ask. 

“Did it-?”

“No.” Riza’s face contorted. “People don’t come back.”

He desperately wanted to ask more, but Riza was done talking. That was alright for now.

“Do you think your parents loved you?” Riza asked quietly, after a long silence.

Roy smiled sadly. “I do.”

She nodded ever so slightly. “I’m glad.” 

For the first time since Roy’s arrival, Riza smiled at him- genuinely. It was only for a second, and she quickly turned away afterward, but Roy held on to it anyways. 

Riza crawled back inside after a while, giving a small wave from the window. 

Roy watched her go, feeling as if a weight had been lifted from his chest. Staring up at the sky he almost wondered...

“I don’t know if you’re up there… but I miss you.” The boy mumbled to himself, eyes on the stars.


End file.
